All-terrain vehicles (“ATV” or “ATVs”), utility-terrain vehicle (“UTV” or “UTVs”), and other similar vehicles, are often equipped with implements such as plows to allow the vehicles to displace snow, dirt, soil, gravel, etc. Such implements are typically removably mounted to the vehicles via appropriate supporting frames or supporting frame assemblies.
Though several different configurations of supporting frames have been proposed and devised throughout the years, most supporting frames can be categorized either as front-mounted (i.e. mounted to the front of the vehicle) or as underside-mounted (i.e. mounted to the underside of the vehicle).
A front-mounted supporting frame is generally configured to be mounted near or at the front end of the vehicle. Hence, due to its frontal position, the front-mounted supporting frame typically allows the implement to be easily raised when not in use.
However, due to its frontal position, the front-mounted supporting frame is typically less effective at distributing the load that the implement transfers to the vehicle when in use. This is generally caused by the relatively large operating angle of the supporting frame with respect to the frame of the vehicle when the implement is in use.
The underside-mounted supporting frame mitigates some of the shortcomings of front-mounted supporting frames, and more particularly the load distribution problem mentioned above. Indeed, as the underside-mounted frame is mounted underneath the vehicle, typically between the front and rear wheels, the supporting frame defines a smaller operating angle with respect to the frame of the vehicle, and the load generated by the implement is thereby more evenly transferred to the frame of the vehicle.
However, despite the foregoing advantage, an underside-mounted supporting frame typically has less ground clearance than a front-mounted supporting frame since the frame cannot be raised as high as a front-mounted supporting frame. Indeed, in an underside-mounted supporting frame, the supporting frame ultimately abuts on the underside of the vehicle when it is raised by the winch.
There is therefore a need for an improved underside-mounted supporting frame which mitigates at least some of the aforementioned shortcomings.